Washington State A.G. sues Facebook over political ads. Again.
The attorney general sued the social media platform for unclear disclosure of ad buyers.
Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson sued Facebook for the second time on Wednesday, alleging the social media giant did not properly divulge the specifics of its political advertisement sales.
The first time Ferguson sued the company in 2018, Facebook paid $238,000 in penalties and legal costs. It stipulated that it would stop accepting political advertisements related to state or local initiatives, although it would allow ones concerning “issues of national importance” for people in the state.
Despite this, Facebook sold at least 171 advertisements to political committees in the state for at least $520,000 since November of 2018. And while it is legal for Facebook to sell advertisements, the company is required to publicly disclose details about candidates, measures, costs that were involved and who paid for the advertisements themselves — something the A.G. said it has failed to do.
“Due to Facebook’s widespread failure to comply with the law, it is currently unknown how many total political advertisements or electioneering communications these 159 campaigns or committees sponsored on Facebook with their collective ad buy of more than half a million dollars,” Ferguson’s office said.
Ferguson noted that while Facebook does make information about political advertisements available online in its Ad Library, it does not include all of the required information — things like the address of the sponsor, the exact cost, date of payment and name of the person who made the payment. The lawsuit would seek civil penalties and require the company to make all of this information public. Facebook said the company aimed to work with authorities in Washington to resolve the dispute in a separate statement to Reuters.
Since the 2016 election, social media companies have made a concerted effort to be more open and transparent with political content — from donations to debates, advertisements to fake news. Facebook’s Ad Library is the company’s attempt to be more open and transparent, although researchers say the database is “poorly maintained” and fails to provide detailed targeting data. Competitors like Google, Snap and Twitter have launched similar libraries related to advertising data; Reddit announced a new project related to how it receives and covers political advertising earlier this week.
Policies prohibiting advertisements that apply to state-specific officials, elections and ballot initiatives in the state remain in effect, a Facebook spokesperson stated to The Hill. A judge could order triple the typical penalty if they find any of the violations were purposeful. As of the writing of this article, there is no indication of when this case would go to court.
“Whether you’re a tech giant or a small newspaper, those who sell political ads must follow our campaign finance law,” Ferguson said in a statement. “Washingtonians have a right to know who’s behind the ads seeking to influence their vote.”
Read the full complaint here.
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